Former Gonzaga Forward Michael Ajayi Announces Transfer Portal Decision

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Andy Patton | Last updated Apr 7, 2025 2:01 PM ET

Gonzaga forward Michael Ajayi will spend his final season of college basketball playing for Thad Matta and the Butler Bulldogs, according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

Ajayi entered the transfer portal after one season at Gonzaga back in late March, becoming the third Zag to do so after guard Dusty Stromer and forward Jun Seok Yeo. Stromer found a new home at Grand Canyon, while Yeo remains uncommitted.

Ajayi is from Kent, Washington and spent two years playing JuCo ball at nearby Pierce College before he was discovered by then Pepperdine head coach Lorenzo Romar, who brought him down to Malibu for the 2023-24 season.

The 6'8 forward blossomed into the WCC's leading scorer, averaging 17.2 points and 9.9 rebounds while earning All-Conference honors and putting himself squarely on the NBA draft radar.

NEWS: Gonzaga transfer Michael Ajayi has committed to Butler, CAA Basketball's NIL Division told ESPN. Ajayi transferred to the Zags after a standout season at Pepperdine in 2023-24, being named First-Team All-Conference after leading the WCC in scoring. pic.twitter.com/7sunTo0Brf
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) April 7, 2025

Ajayi flirted with entering the draft before ultimately deciding to return to school for his senior season, having committed to Gonzaga out of the transfer portal.

However, Ajayi never found his footing with Mark Few's club, falling out of the starting lineup early in the year and ultimately averaging just 6.5 points and 5.4 rebounds in 18.8 minutes per game, shooting 53.4% on two pointers while his three point percentage fell dramatically from 47% at Pepperdine to just 18.2% at Gonzaga.

Now he'll head to the Big East to play for a Butler team that went 15-20 overall and 6-14 in conference play last year. He joins Fort Wayne guard Jalen Jackson and Drexel guard Yame Butler as new transfers for the Bulldogs, who have a ton of holes to fill after losing their three leading scorers - Pierre Brooks, Jahmyl Telfort, and Patrick McCaffery - to graduation.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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